Event Details

The Graphic Artists Guild's Boston Chapter Presents:

Contracts & Licensing For Visual Creators

with Lisa Shaftel, Graphic Artists Guild National Advocacy Chair

Part 1: Contracts

All professionals should use a written agreement (contract) for every job with their clients. A contract is simply an agreement in writing that describes what the job entails and what your client will pay you and when they will pay you, as well as copyright ownership and licensing terms. No lawyers necessary.

How to write your own agreement for an assignment or project in plain English, and what points must be included.

Sample boilerplate contracts from the Guild.

Negotiating terms in contracts that clients give you as well as definitions for the different terms.

What is a Work-Made-For-Hire agreement?

What is an All-Rights agreement (also called an “assignment of rights”)?

Why you should keep the copyright to your work, and why and when you should sell them.

Part 2: Licensing

As the creator and copyright owner, artists have the right to reproduce artwork originally commissioned for one specified use for new or additional uses. Reuse is also called “secondary rights” and “subsidiary rights.” “Licensing is big business, presenting tremendous opportunities for graphic artists of all disciplines to generate revenue in new markets.” [Handbook of Pricing & Ethical Guidelines, 12th edition]

Far too many artists are working without written agreements or don’t discuss usage with their clients, and many who use written agreements don’t specify usage rights. The whole value of owning the copyright to your work is in licensing usage!

Overview of licensing art.

How to license your own work for various uses in the marketplace.

How to license other people’s work to incorporate into your own projects.

What is the Creative Commons licensing model [it’s not copyright].

About Lisa Shaftel

Lisa Shaftel is an illustrator and scenic artist, and has been a Graphic Artists Guild member since 1985. She was elected National Advocacy Committee Chair in January 2004, and again in 2006, 2008 and 2010.

As National Advocacy Committee Chair, Lisa assists artists who contact the Guild for help with client/contract disputes, business practices and ethics, and attorney referrals. She educates creative professionals and keeps the Guild in the forefront of the industry on issues affecting artists’ rights, such as copyright and orphan works, by writing Congressional testimonies, Guild White Papers, and a regular column in the “Guild News”. She advocates for artists at Congressional hearings, at meetings and discussions with the U.S. Copyright Office and other organizations representing creative professionals.

FAQs

When do ticket sales end?

Midnight on September 24. Prices are higher at the door.

Do I have to bring my printed ticket to the event?

Nope. Just be prepared to prove that you're you- ID works best.

The name on the registration/ticket doesn't match the attendee. Is that okay?

It usually is. However, you can actually change the name on your ticket! Check it out: [link]